Shopping carts incorporating child seats are known. However, many common designs have numerous drawbacks. For example, in some designs, the child seat is fixed; therefore, even when no child occupies the seat, the seat takes up valuable space that could be used to carry merchandise. In other designs having a folding child seat, the folding mechanism is often difficult to operate, sometimes resulting in pinched fingers for the user or occupant. In still other designs, the child seat is often formed from welded metal wire panels, resulting in a very uncomfortable seat. Accordingly, there is a need for an improved shopping cart including a comfortable child seat having a smooth and easily operated folding mechanism, whereby folding the child seat results in additional cargo space in the shopping cart.